UN Reports 95% of Ukrainian POWs Tortured in Russia

More than 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war have suffered torture in Russia. In contrast, the treatment of Russian prisoners in Ukraine is entirely different, reported Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.

She made this statement during an interview on the Dutch television channel Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS).

"They are beaten with metal rods and sticks, subjected to severe electric shocks. They are stripped of their clothes. It is horrifying. It is the worst thing I have seen in my 20-year career visiting prisoners on behalf of the UN. Torture is widespread and systemic. 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war have been tortured, and this constitutes a war crime," Bell said.

According to her, the UN Monitoring Mission has full access to Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine. However, in Russia, they are deprived of the right to communicate with Ukrainian prisoners.

"The Ukrainian authorities provide us with unrestricted access to camps and temporary detention facilities with prisoners of war," Bell added.

The UN has repeatedly reported documented cases of the execution of prisoners of war since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine. Torture violates Article 3 of the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

Lately there were several reports of decapitation and dismemberement of Ukrainian soldiers and prisoners of war by Russian soldiers.